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Layne Bryant has followed the same path as Starbucks. Once this whole fad blows over I will post another blog on the sales revenue the I’m No Angel hashtag campaign brought them. This time it is the body image that is up for sale. Layne Bryant is known for selling bras and underwear to larger women.

Victoria Secret carries large bras and most of us know by now that they sell society the angel/beauty image. A lot of women with a larger breast size also carry a body type that supports that size. It is not often you see a size 2 lady with non enhanced size D breasts. I watched the Layne Bryant No angel commercial and was shocked to see the first screen flash be a breast shot. This is the very thing Victoria Secret sells women. Next came the thighs with an underwear pose. To keep it politically correct they had women of all different shades of skin. Now I have had large thighs before and yes I am a woman. Wearing a skirt or shorts on a hot Summer day can be a literal pain. Face it! Chafing hurts!

In the 90s when I was in school we were taught to be proud of our size. We are fine the way we are and bullying is never okay. Suddenly it became a moral issue to nicely tell someone they might want to watch what they eat and get some exercise. If a Woman asks a man if she is fat he is to say “No sweet heart I love you the way you are.” He is either being honest with you and really does like you the way you are or he is scared of telling you the truth because you might freak out. Have you noticed how simple statements have become a form of bullying? It is no longer okay to tell someone something negative! We are expected to feel good all the time even when we are doing the opposite. The anti depressants they push on us only verify this. No you cannot suffer through some kind of emotional pain and learn a lesson. If a statement makes you angry there is probably some truth to it or you would not be angry or hurt about it. Often times the deepest lessons we learn in life involve pain. When you learned to ride a bike you probably hurt yourself. I did. I was also taught to get back up again and not give up, even if blood was involved.

The obesity rates are growing rapidly within the Western World. Even some areas of Africa are now seeing an obesity spike. Fast food joints are popping up in almost every single country in the world. In the Western Hemisphere we are fighting back slowly against these food companies. We have seen the consequences of diabetes and heart disease. my 90s generation seems to be saying No to their kids because we are suffering consequences we do not want our future children to suffer.

I have watched family members and friends die of obesity. As much as we tried we could not convince them that they would feel better about themselves with diet or exercise. The line “You only live once” was the response anyone would receive who attempted to help. Your right you only live once but if losing limbs and having heart surgery is living life you can count me out.

While one half of the world slowly shapes up another half will be fattening up. I believe in the future the way we deal with fast food will change. We will learn how to mass produce healthy food options and serve them drive through style. It is only a matter of time and restaurants such as Veggie Grill and Chipotle are leading examples of this. Of course Bk, KFC, and Mc’ds are going over seas they feel the pinch and they can no longer compete where a population is educated. In the future the entire world will push them out unless they make serious nutritional changes.

I know by writing this blog I am helping the company advertise their over priced clothes. It is already all over social media now so my one blog is probably not going to make a huge dent in lowering the sales. Some of you might even rush off to the mall to buy the clothes after reading this. That is okay if you do it is your money.

True beauty is eating healthy and working out. True beauty comes from within. it takes a strong person to say No to the junk food advertisements. It takes a strong person to get up and work out in some kind of way every day regardless of how you feel. It takes discipline to tell your friends and family No when a slice of cake is passed your direction.

Is it wrong to cave in and eat something a bit unhealthy occasionally? No it is not. Define occasional and keep yourself in check. I have seen occasional mean something different to many people. For some occasional means only one cookie a day or one ice cream a week. To others it might be one ice cream a month. One ice cream a week is better then one ice cream a day and so on. Some people eat ten cookies a day! It is important to know how to get back on a healthy track if you divert off of it.

It is even more important to admit self abuse and forgive yourself for it. You do not need an advertisement to tell you if you are healthy or not or how to feel about yourself. You know in your heart and mind if you are treating your body as a temple. A temple is a place of relaxation and rest. A place to collect yourself. Your body should be this way to you. Your body should not be stressed out and sore. Treat it as the temple it was created to be. Only when you do that your true beauty will show.

If your being honest with yourself and you have realized you are not treating yourself as a temple should be treated….

WHAT ARE YOU GOING TO DO ABOUT IT????

Will a plus size clothing store make you feel better about yourself when you go to the mall? Will you weaken your mind and give in to a campaign and advertising scheme?

Most of us were taught to “At first if you do not succeed, try try again. ” At least I was. That quote was constantly repeated in school and at home. It was drilled so much into my mind that giving up at something made me feel anxious and depressed. I felt like a failure inside. I really thought that it was me doing something wrong preventing an idea from working. Instead I should have been thinking maybe this is not correct for my life path.

The key to success is motivation. You probably will not have the answers right away to solve a problem. You will not know every detail of starting something new until you jump in. Trying keeps your feet from getting wet and a little cold. Life can be like testing the pool water before you jump in. Do you ever stick your feet in first just to pull them out quickly? Trying is like that.

If you try and try and try at the same thing but it does not work out for you your going to go in life circles. It might seem your doing something different but the reality is your not. You might go a small distance. When you put your feet in the pool they got a bit cold. However it took jumping in to get swimming.

With the right tools I can solve my own problems. Trying without using tools will not get you very far. Motivation will bring you tools. Motivation will take you to get a library card to get a free education so you can pass college without repeating classes. Motivation will help you lose weight or stop a bad habit. Trying will not.

My Psychology professor taught me this: ” The word try leaves room for failure.” Do not say you will try something. In your mind you have created the intent to fail. When I first heard that I was shocked and a little upset. I used the try word a lot. It took me several years of falling on my head, the butt would have been kinder at least the fall would have been cushioned, to learn this lesson. Hearing the words trying leaves room for failure takes a mind switch. That mind switch is really up to the person.

When you stop trying you become more open to what is going to work out for you and what is not. If you have been trying to do something for a long time and it is just causing you pain and further downfall you need to switch up the tactic.

It is time for a different action. Go back to the drawing board and look at your strengths and weaknesses. Maybe you have been focusing on your weakness too much and your missing out on the very strength you carry to pull you out of the rut you are in.

It is okay to give up on something and start over. When that time comes to walk away from something look at what lessons you did learn. If you can look at what you learned you did not fail. It is when you fail and learn nothing that you really wasted your time.

Do you ever think about others before you do laundry, wash your body, throw on perfume and deodorant?

I know you have your favorite scent or product.

Do you ever think about how it affects other people around you? Not everyone can handle what you wear.

There are laws against where people can smoke cigarettes so why cant we have regulations about what goes into beauty products? I would rather see society make a conscious decision on their own to avoid artificial scents. Every time a law is past it hurts another group and makes living harder.

Could you do me a favor? Could you please stop wearing products that contain artificial chemicals? A bit of essential oil on your wrist or neck can go a long way and they are safe for most people. They work better then the artificial stuff anyway.

Please think about others with chemical sensitivity before you start your day. Nobody should be afraid to go out and interact with friends in a public setting but I am. Imagine what it would be like if you went to work every day in fear that your throat or lungs will close off because someone decided to spray an air freshener by your desk………..

How would you live?

How would you feel?

Please think and change what you do and talk to those you know. Just because something does not affect you does not mean it does not affect others. How would you feel if you knew you were responsible for a person going to the hospital over your perfume? Please think and stop using so many chemicals.

There are many people like me and you never know who you will affect today.

I read in a book that you will make within 10k of your social circle. We naturally interact with those who make the same as us.

Why is this?

I am no expert but I believe we prefer to hang out with those who relate and sympathize with us. We do not want to be pushed so we certainly do not push other people. This includes ourselves. One can be uncomfortable when socializing in a brand new environment. This goes for the wealthy associating with the lower classes and the lower classes associating with the wealthy. If you are not used to wealth and you were to walk into a mansion you would automatically get that “Wow” factor. Same thing happens when a person who knows nothing but wealth walks into a place of poverty.

In 2004 I went to the Dominican Republic on a mission trip. It took our youth group a year to raise enough money to go. Our goal was to build a school, bring in supplies for young children and mothers, and bring medical care, yes we had an entire medical team with us. The TSA in the USA was not thrilled about our suitcases of formula. Apparently it looks like Cocaine. When we landed in the Dominican Republic we were treated like celebrities. Gates were put up between our group and the people. The people were waiting in large lines asking for hugs and hand shakes.

For a second I thought I stepped out of a limo on Hollywood Blvd. I was extremely shocked the following day when the local people showed me their villages. Of course I have seen mud huts on Television ads and National Geographic Magazine. Seeing it in real life is an entire shock of its own. Amazingly everyone seemed very happy and generous. They did not know my home was not made out of mud. I was astounded they were so happy living in leaky conditions. The beds were cardboard boxes laid out on the ground. The hand-woven blankets looked very comfortable and warm. It was very different from my box spring mattress and quilt set I had.

I passed out some candy bars to the local kids. The older kids took the bars and broke them up amongst the younger ones, leaving the smallest pieces for themselves. I walked away in culture shock.

On the way out of the Dominican Republic I was stopped by foreign security during the check point. My bag went through the typical search process because they were unsure of what a nebulizer was. They were extremely defensive at first because the nebulizer was bulky and looked like a bomb. The language barrier did not help so I pointed to my fanny pack and slowly moved my inhaler out of the pocket. I put the inhaler up to my mouth and then they started laughing. One of the security guards waved me forward, I collected my nebulizer bag and was able to go onto the plane without incident. Breathing conditions are Universal.

By Western standards I am not in the 1 percent nor close to it. Experiencing the Dominican Republic put me into a poverty vs. wealth shock. I started asking myself..What would it be like to take one of these kids with me back to the USA? How would they feel? Would they be happy with all our amenities or would they feel miserable because of the lack of work there is to do? In most places we do not have to haul water to our homes for cooking.In fact I felt extremely lazy and I still do to this day. We cut out a lot of work with our utility coverage in the Western world. Imagine what it would be like to haul water a mile to your home just to cook a meal or water your plants? This is why I say I feel lazy. I can walk into my bathroom and wash sweat off in an instant.

My Dominican Republic story is proof that anyone of any wealth status can feel a wealth shock when we are around a different income range.

Yes it is scary to socialize with a new group of people but it is important you take the time to do so at least once in your life! Know what it is like to feel third world poor for a day and know what it is like to feel like you have millions put in the bank! Yes it is okay to splurge on a hair studio or a fancy spa day! I think more people should save up a portion of their income to do just that! It is okay if you are wealthy to spend the night out in the woods with hardly anything at all and live off of only what fits in your bag. How can you help people in poverty if you do not know what it is like to be homeless?

Studies have shown that if you stay within one mentality that is all your going to receive. If you are not wealthy but you wish to be hang out with those who are right now! Who better to teach you wealth management then those who are already managing wealth? If you socialize primarily with those in debt because your in debt you will probably only learn debt management. If you wish to prove me wrong scroll through your friends list now. No I am not saying leave behind those who you are close too! Keep those who are close to you close! You could be hurting yourself by refusing to get to know new people! Be open to a bigger social circle without being afraid! People love teaching people! So why not learn marketing and savings plans from those who have mastered it? That way you can help yourself and other people!

If you are wealthy and you want to experience homelessness then follow a homeless person around for a day. It is pointless to complain about other wealth classes because regardless of where you are at in society you are part of a wealth class!

Always remember that if you have running water, a roof over your head, one warm meal to eat a day, and heat you are wealthier then most of the world!

Earlier this week I posted a question: Whether or not I should consume eggs and give up the Vegan life style. I got several mixed replies. The act of ending the Vegan lifestyle after two years was not an easy decision. Most people told me this: You live once so eat what you want.That is a great attitude to have if you do not understand what it is like to become obese and then overcome it. When you defeat obesity the reality sets in of how fast and easily it can happen again and its easy to admit that a new kind of paranoia or fear has set in. The fear of being fat.

The following is based off of my experiences and I am not a nutritionist nor a doctor.

The Pros of a Vegan Diet

Very quick weight loss

Decreased Cholesterol

Food bill Decreased

The Cons of a Vegan Diet

At first you will feel increased energy. Over time that energy increase will drop. I found myself depressed, emotional, and exhausted.

Tofu is going to taste like tofu regardless of how you flavor or cook it.

Cooking becomes repetitive- Unless you can afford to buy out of season produce be prepared to face food boredom during the colder months.

Vitamin Deficiency- There are very few sources to get B-12 from on this diet. Your brain and nerves need b-12 to function. Most Vegans will tell you that you can gain B-12 through eating Sea Vegetables. I tried this and still became weak.

I never felt full. Constantly had food cravings

Socialization becomes difficult. You will soon realize your support team will not be as strong as you suspected and some might even find it rude when you turn down food or you cannot eat out at a certain restaurant, especially if you have done so for years with a group of people . Depending on where you live it can be very difficult to eat Vegan and still maintain a good social structure.

I noticed bone weakness and yes my teeth started chipping. That was the first sign I was low in minerals and vitamins.

Bloating……oh the bloating.

Increase in nerve pain

If you are going to be Vegan anyway after reading this do not use Vegan based media to tell you how to eat. Please seek guidance from a nutritionist. I read the books written by professionals but over time a lot can go wrong. You need to have blood work done to make sure that you are not becoming vitamin and mineral deficient. In fact being Vegan is not right for everyone and its best to consult an expert directly, not just read what “experts” publish.

Since I brought my question to the table I have reintroduced eggs and goats milk to my diet. Goats milk is very high in Selenium and great if you are lactose sensitive or you suffer from heart burn. It is the closest milk to human breast milk. I have been sensitive to cows milk in the past so I decided to try goats milk for a while and see how it goes. So far I feel better but it has only been a few days. After two years eggs taste amazing! I really missed having an omelet or french toast for breakfast. Sure you can make a tofu scramble or a baked french toast that are Vegan, but it is not the same. Tofu will never taste like a real egg . I know it takes time for the body to adjust but after a few days of eating eggs and drinking milk my digestion has improved and the nerve pain has decreased.

Of course it is important to watch where you buy your animal products from. Local is best and it is a fun adventure to visit the farm where your milk and eggs come from!

I will not go back to eating meat products unless several doctors were to demand it. Meat contains a lot of acid and is linked to inflammation.

I do not regret being a Vegan because I can now give a solid opinion on it, learned a lot about myself, and how to cook a few new dishes! Not all of it was bad. It simply did not work for my body. Not every human being can be a Vegan. My friends are right you only do get this exact life therefore it is important to learn what works best for you! Trial and error often hurts but sticking to one life style because that is all you know can be just as extreme.

It is also not okay to judge. Some people have to have meat in they’re diet or they get really sick. I would like to see the shaming of meat eaters end and the meat eaters need to stop making fun of those who choose vegetables!

I grew up as a meat eater, went vegan, and now I am a vegetarian. Regardless of how you classify yourself bullying another group will not get you too far. You never know when you will end up switching sides so do not judge for you too will one day be judged!

I hope all of us can agree that shoving thousands of animals in one building is not ethical nor healthy when it comes to spreading disease. Regardless of how you eat know where all your food comes from and what it is in it!

Where they sniffed they’re own farts? Well apparently South Park predicted something. Apparently fart sniffing has a health benefit.

Sniffing Farts Prevents Cancer

“We have exploited this natural process by making a compound, called AP39, which slowly delivers very small amounts of this gas specifically to the mitochondria,” Professor Matt Whiteman, of the University of Exeter Medical School said. “Our results indicate that if stressed cells are treated with AP39, mitochondria are protected and cells stay alive.”

So what causes massive boredom that can lead to horrible behavior and negative consequences? A lack of imagination. There is a lot to do when you really take the time to think about it. The problem? They are all activities you probably turn your nose up at. I can think right now of a dozen things to do want to see? No you don’t but I will enlighten you anyway just because you may be curious. I am going to assume most people have better things to do then read 12 random things to do if your bored

Draw something

Practice a foreign language

Watch a movie with foreign subtitles

Weed the Garden

Bathe the dog

Scratch the dog’s belly

Google: Events in my area

Call a Random number

Write a book

Call the parents

Pick a random recipe off of a random site. Make it better then the one who posted it.

Sit on a bench in a busy area and people watch

Whatever you do, don’t be that guy. If you are bored too long you can end up staying in your own mind for a very long time and that can lead to some crazy things. There is always something to do.

My Mamma would always tell me: You had better go find something to do before I give you something to do.